legacy // obx

1.2

"I CANT BELIEVE YOU ALMOST PULLED A GUN ON WARD TODAY," Kiara half laughed at JJ as they sat at the kitchen table at The Chateau.

"The bastard would have deserved it," JJ smiled looking down at his beer as he brought it to his mouth to take another swig.

"Yeah he would have," Kiara agreed, taking another bite of their dinner. "Thanks for the sandwich by the way."

"Of course. I figured it was time to have an actual meal for once."

"Aren't you like, piss broke though?" Kiara joked, ignoring the very real reality of her statement.

"Oh yeah. Completely. I get paid Friday though. Should be around a grand with the hours I picked up this pay period," JJ stated. "At this rate I'll only need around two years to completely pay off restitution," he laughed sarcastically.

Kiara knew JJ was joking, but she stayed completely aware of the gravity of the situation her friend was actually in. She laughed along with him, trying to enjoy a little bit of banter as an attempt to take the edge off of how deep of shit they were in.

"I have a couple thousand stashed away in my savings that I could withdraw-" Kiara started before she was staunchly cut off.

"Absolutely fucking not," JJ interrupted, sternly. "You're not using your own money to get me out of this mess, Kie."

"JJ think about it for a second-"

"Not a chance in hell."

"JJ-"

"I said no, Kiara!" JJ yelled snapping his head in the direction of his friend.

She went silent, not really in the mood to continue the argument. JJ's face softened when he saw Kiara's face drop in response to his outburst.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell," he apologized quickly, uncomfortable at the thought that he had made Kiara upset.

"It's okay."

They went quiet for a few moments, both hearts aching for each other, desperate for a solution they both knew didn't exist.

"What are you going to do, JJ?" Kiara whispered, looking down at her hands that laid in her lap.

"I really don't know, Kie. I wish I had an answer for you."

"I'm worried about you, J." Kiara looked up at him.

"I know you are."

-

Kiara had decided to stay at The Chateau that evening as it was late by the time her and JJ had wrapped up their talk at the dinner table. The two had retreated to their usual spots: Kiara in John B's room and JJ fast asleep on the pullout couch next to the front door. It was a quiet evening, the clock reading just past midnight. The only sound in whole place was the gentle dings of the windchime on the front porch ringing through the doors.

Even with the peaceful ambiance of the summer night, Kiara could not find it in her to fall asleep. Her mind raced with a million different thoughts, her body laced with stress and worry. She worried for everyone. She worried for JJ and the problems he was facing. She worried for Pope, hoping he wasn't too upset at her. She worried for her family, knowing that they were watching her slip away into a depression caused by the loss of her two best friends. Hell, she worried for herself, wondering constantly if she was doing the right thing. Kiara truly felt helpless, like no matter what she did, everything still went to shit.

Her two best friends were dead, and she couldn't help but feel like she was about to lose the only ones she had left. Kiara had so much love in her heart for those who were close to her, but lately it felt like that just wasn't enough to make everything work out.